Blackjazz is back, and this time it's not nearly as jazzy. It's more Industrial and dare I say poppy, but you can tell it's the same guys who know how to make you go, "What The Hell Was That?" This is absolutely more accessible than Blackjazz is and a good starting point for the band if you never heard of them before. Check this one out if you want something very experimental, yet listenable.

Video Game Metal at it's best. Prog Metal young masters Last Chance To Reason have sadly become a side project for all members involved. Michael Lessard is now the singer of The Contortionist, and the other members of the band have moved onto different aspects of life. It's sad because I love LCTR to death and will always be a supporter of the band. Level 3 really shines through with Michael Lessard more than anyone else. The music goes through many different twists and turns but on every song Lessard shines with his screams, growls, and amazing clean vocals. Level 3 is a bit more laid back overall compared to Level 2 but in a way is a bit more listenable overall with all the landscapes provided. Support this band, you never know when Level 4 can be made.

Melodic Death Metal's First Double Disc album (Although barely, it's only 4 minutes past the 90 minute cut off mark), Soilwork have outdone themselves once again with taking brutality and melodicness into the perfect blend of listenable Metal. Everyone in the band really shines through on this album. The Melodic songs are over-joyously good while the brutal songs harken back to the beginning of the band. Soilwork proves again that they have lots of life left in the band, and this is in no way a sign of slowing down.

I can't even consider this the best hard Rock album of the year, it is a damn amazing Prog Metal album, in reality. Alter Bridge have only gotten better over the years and they are indeed at the top of their game right now. The songs are ultra heavy for a Hard Rock band and progressive as hell in a lot of tracks. The radio singles don't even sound like they are meant to be radio singles. The whole album overall proves that radio Hard Rock doesn't have to suck. Although many choose to suck, Alter Bridge does not and they will be continuing to kick everyone's asses for years to come.

This double album is the quintessential "What Am I Listening To?" album Kayo Dot is a very Experimental, Avant Garde, Progressive, Orchestral, Metal band. While I do feel the band has a few clunkers (Coyote being the biggest one) they won me back over last year with their EP Gamma Knife, and fully won me back with Hubardo. It takes all the messed up things I love about the band and makes it listenable. It's not something that can be adequately described in words, you just gotta divulge yourself in the album and let yourself be engulfed by the massive cluster of magnificent music you will hear.

The infection has been removed, the soul of this machine has improved!

Join Date: Oct 2004

Location: St. Louis

Posts: 2,070

Quote:

Originally Posted by MPF

17.) Soilwork- The Living Infinite

Melodic Death Metal's First Double Disc album (Although barely, it's only 4 minutes past the 90 minute cut off mark), Soilwork have outdone themselves once again with taking brutality and melodicness into the perfect blend of listenable Metal. Everyone in the band really shines through on this album. The Melodic songs are over-joyously good while the brutal songs harken back to the beginning of the band. Soilwork proves again that they have lots of life left in the band, and this is in no way a sign of slowing down.

A Concept Death Metal album focusing on the life of German Field Marshall Erwin Rommel, Hail Of Bullets proves once again that they are one of the finest Death metal bands currently going. The whole lineup is completely badass and knows everything there is to know about writing polished, well crafted and absolutely badass Death Metal. Making a concept album based off the man who very well could have been responsible for the assassination of Adolf Hitler (Obviously didn't pan out that way) makes it even better. I can't praise the band enough, Hail Of Bullets is a flagship band for what Death Metal should sound like, any Death Metal band should take note.

Another album that completely blew me out of the water this year. Atmospheric Blackened Death Metal. Taking the best moments of Atmospheric Black Metal and incorporating it with some damn fine Death Metal. It's Dark, It's heavy, it's scary at times, but overall it takes you on a dark journey that you won't be able to forget. Kick back and chill to this, it's rare you can do that with a Death Metal band, but this these guys you can just relax and enjoy the evil spirits take over you.

Periphery meets Dredg. It really is the best way to describe these guys. I have been waiting for years for this album to come out to no avail, but after long production problems, the band finally said screw it and released it on their own. it does have the Progressive sounds that Periphery are known for now (not so much the Djent) and the vocal melodies that make Dredg so damn captivating, there is some screams but they are from guest singers on the album, the main vocal melodies are cleans and so damn good. This album just came out a couple weeks ago, but it is good enough to be in my top 12, without question. I love these guys and I really hope they can make it through all the turmoil.

It takes so much for me to be floored by a band that has an industrial influence for me to be interested in them. Mechina is Atmospheric, Industrial, Symphonic, Death Metal. The music feels like a Sci-Fi Orchestral Soundtrack made in the future of a bleak universe. The song Anathema in particular (one of my favorite songs of 2013) proves this point, it is simply gorgeous and has the polar opposite sound of the band Amaranthe; Death Growls, Operatic Female vocals and Power Metal cleans in a Dark Symphonic Metal sound, not the Poppy sound Amaranthe is known for. The whole album is filled with these gorgeous soundscapes and it doesn't let you go until it's all over. And if you dig this, Mechina just released their brand new album, Xenon, on Bandcamp, Yesterday and it is even better.